Common Name: Fijian Dusky Anemonefish
Scientific Name: Amphiprion barberi Allen, Drew & Kaufman, 2008
Distribution: Fiji and Tonga
Type Locality: Namena Island, Lomaiviti Group, Fiji
Identification: Single stripe. Body colored a dull orange-red. Females with a dusky back; males more brightly colored, often without any darkening. Pelvic fins orange-red, with a dark leading edge. Anal fin orange-red.
Similar: The lightly colored ventral fins are comparable to A. ephippium, but that species is otherwise quite differently colored. Males are similar to males of A. frenatus and would require meristic comparison if females aren’t available. Other species in this group, while similar, have darker ventral fins.
Notes: This is the most recently described species (2008), having previously been confused with the Australian A. rubrocinctus. It has variably been referred to as the Fiji Anemonefish, Fiji Barberi Anemonefish and Barber’s Anemonefish. The common name used here was created to highlight this fish’s unique biogeography and appearance.
Specimens from Tonga are noticeably darker than those in Fiji and could possibly warrant species recognition. It is also possible that this dark color is due to hybridization with the nearby A. cf melanopus “Samoa”. A similar distribution is seen in the perideraion group, with both A. pacificus and A. cf perideraion “Fiji” being found in Tonga and Northern Fiji, with suspected hybrids known.
Amphiprionology 